Appeal against a housing decision

You can appeal most decisions made by the Department of Territory Families, Housing and Communities up to 2 years ago which may affect you and your housing needs.

Examples include all of the following:

• cancellation of housing applications
• tenant debt
• tenancy issues such as transfer and rent assessment
• maintenance request such as fencing and disability changes
• evictions.

Read the lodge an appeal with housing fact sheet PDF (65.3 KB).

You can't appeal any of the following:

• disputes between neighbours
• government policy
• complaints about a department staff member - these are investigated internally
• decisions where legal action is being taken or has been taken - for example, the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal
• matters being reviewed by:
  • Ombudsman Northern Territory
  • Northern Territory Anti-Discrimination Commissioner
  • Information Commissioner Northern Territory
  • Minister for Territory Families and Urban Housing
  • Minister for Remote Housing and Town Camps
• a decision made by the department not to sell, lease or dispose of properties under their control to a specific person or body.

If you don't know if your issue can be appealed, call the Appeals Unit on 1800 685 743.

There is a 2-tiered process that makes sure appeals are dealt with in a fair, consistent and transparent way.

First tier appeal

Your appeal will first go to the Appeals Unit.

They will review your appeal and make recommendations to the relevant housing office.

You will then need to follow these steps:

Step 1. Fill in the first tier form.

First tier form DOCX (73.5 KB)
First tier form PDF (572.9 KB)

Step 2. Provide documents to support your appeal.

Step 3. Submit your form by mail, email or in person.

By mail

Appeals Unit 
GPO Box 4621
Darwin NT 0801 
housing.appeals@nt.gov.au

In person

Apply at your local housing office.

Second tier appeal

If you're still unhappy, you can make a second tier appeal.

Follow these steps:

Step 1. Fill in the second tier form.

Second tier form DOCX (72.0 KB)
Second tier form PDF (573.5 KB)

Step 2. Provide documents to support your appeal.

Step 3. Submit your form by mail, email or in person.

By mail

Appeals Unit 
GPO Box 4621
Darwin NT 0801 
housing.appeals@nt.gov.au

In person

Apply at your local housing office.

Your appeal will be investigated by the Appeals Unit, then passed to the Public Housing Appeals Board.

This board is independent from the department.

Their job is to see if the department's decisions are fair, within the law and consider your circumstances.

Hearing

You will be asked to attend an appeal hearing so you can tell your story.

You can bring a family member or an advocate.

To help you with your appeal, an interpreter can be provided at no cost to you.

Following the appeal, the board will provide recommendations to the department for a decision.

You will be then advised in writing of the decision and the reason for this decision.

If you disagree with the outcome of your appeal, you can take your complaint further to any of the following organisations:

• Minister for Territory Families and Urban Housing
• Minister for Remote Housing and Town Camps
• Ombudsman Northern Territory
• Northern Territory Anti-Discrimination Commissioner
• Information Commissioner Northern Territory.

The Appeals Unit will provide help with the appeals process or refer you to specific Aboriginal organisations.